Greg Pauly, associate curator of herpetology at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, examines a rare yellow-bellied sea snake found in Newport Beach at the Pacific Marine Mammal Center in Laguna Beach on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2018. It is only the fifth one ever to be found in California. (Photo by Kevin SullivanOrange County Register/SCNG)

LAGUNA BEACH — Officials from the Pacific Marine Mammal Center on Thursday, Jan. 11 joined scientists from the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles to announce the discovery in Newport Beach of a rare, venomous yellow-bellied sea snake.

The 25-inch-long adult female snake, found by a beachgoer who nearly tripped over it near the 18th Street lifeguard tower on Tuesday, has the marine mammal rescue center assessing what it could mean for sea lion strandings this year.

Scientists at the Los Angeles museum are intrigued, but a bit concerned.

Cider, a California sea lion that was the 121st sea lion rescued in 2017, sits with other lethargic and under weight sea lions at the Pacific Marine Mammal Center in Laguna Beach on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2018. (Photo by Kevin SullivanOrange County Register/SCNG)

A rare yellow-bellied sea snake found in Newport Beach waits to be inspected at the Pacific Marine Mammal Center in Laguna Beach on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2018. It is only the fifth one ever to be found in California. (Photo by Kevin SullivanOrange County Register/SCNG)

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Lumiere, a Harbor Seal, swims in a pool at the Pacific Marine Mammal Center in Laguna Beach on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2018. (Photo by Kevin SullivanOrange County Register/SCNG)

Hot Toddy, a California sea lion that has been nursed back to health over the last 10-months, plays next to a pool at the Pacific Marine Mammal Center in Laguna Beach on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2018. (Photo by Kevin SullivanOrange County Register/SCNG)

Greg Pauly, associate curator of herpetology at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, examines a rare yellow-bellied sea snake found in Newport Beach at the Pacific Marine Mammal Center in Laguna Beach on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2018. It is only the fifth one ever to be found in California and could mean the beginning of an El Nino and an onslaught of stranded sea lions. (Photo by Kevin SullivanOrange County Register/SCNG)

Coco Chanel, a California sea lion that was rescued Wednesday morning, sits with other lethargic and under weight sea lions at the Pacific Marine Mammal Center in Laguna Beach on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2018. (Photo by Kevin SullivanOrange County Register/SCNG)

Greg Pauly, associate curator of herpetology at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, examines a rare yellow-bellied sea snake found in Newport Beach at the Pacific Marine Mammal Center in Laguna Beach on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2018. It is only the fifth one ever to be found in California. (Photo by Kevin SullivanOrange County Register/SCNG)

Greg Pauly, associate curator of herpetology at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, left, and Animal Care Coordinator Wendy Leeds, examine a rare yellow-bellied sea snake found in Newport Beach at the Pacific Marine Mammal Center in Laguna Beach on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2018. It is only the fifth one ever to be found in California and could mean the beginning of an El Nino and an onslaught of stranded sea lions. (Photo by Kevin SullivanOrange County Register/SCNG)

Greg Pauly, associate curator of herpetology at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, examines a rare yellow-bellied sea snake found in Newport Beach at the Pacific Marine Mammal Center in Laguna Beach on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2018. It is only the fifth one ever to be found in California. (Photo by Kevin SullivanOrange County Register/SCNG)

Greg Pauly, associate curator of herpetology at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, examines a rare yellow-bellied sea snake found in Newport Beach at the Pacific Marine Mammal Center in Laguna Beach on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2018. It is only the fifth one ever to be found in California. (Photo by Kevin SullivanOrange County Register/SCNG)

Greg Pauly, associate curator of herpetology at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, examines a rare yellow-bellied sea snake found in Newport Beach at the Pacific Marine Mammal Center in Laguna Beach on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2018. It is only the fifth one ever to be found in California. (Photo by Kevin SullivanOrange County Register/SCNG)

“The discovery of the rare pelagic snake is only the fifth ever recorded in the history of California,” said Greg Pauly, associate curator of herpetology at the museum. “But it is the first discovered outside an El Niño year.”

Most recently the snake species — which is typically only found in tropical waters and never comes ashore — was discovered on a beach in Coronado in January 2016. Another one was found in December 2015 at Bolsa Chica State Beach and another was discovered on Silver Strand Beach in Oxnard in October 2015. Oxnard is the farthest north one of these snakes has ever been found, Pauly said. The first yellow-bellied sea snake to show up in California was found on a beach in San Clemente in 1972.

Officials at PMMC worry that the discovery of a snake this week could signal trouble for sea lions.

In 2015 and early 2016, El Niño conditions resulted in elevated water temperatures. That was also the third year of mass sea lion strandings along the California coastline.

Scientists at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration attributed the strandings to a warming ocean and lack of food for these marine mammals birthed by the thousands each year on the Channel Island rookeries. The mass strandings were declared an “unusual mortality event” by federal officials. PMMC rescued more than 600 sea lions that season.

So far, the center has rescued 10 sea lion pups since Sept. 30 — the most recent, from an Orange County beach, on Wednesday, Jan. 10 — an increase from the same period last year, said PMMC spokeswoman Krysta Higuchi. PMMC rescued 124 sea lions for the 2017 season.

The fact that the yellow-bellied sea snake was found in what climatologists are calling a weak La Niña has staff at the sea lion center and Pauly asking questions. The El Niño climate pattern results in warming water and higher surface pressures; La Niña creates colder water and lower surface pressures.

“We are having to totally re-assess what we’re thinking,” Higuchi said, adding that she is comparing notes with Justin Viezbicke, marine mammal coordinator at the NOAA.

For Pauly, the discovery meant a trip to PMMC Wednesday to pick up the snake. The animal, weak and sick and weighing one-third of a pound, was euthanized by Newport Beach animal control on Wednesday.

“When they get washed up on the beach, it’s because they have no energy to swim back,” he said. “They get so sick and their body temperatures get so low. They have such a unique lifestyle and would require a huge tank. They do not do well in captivity, so there was no option.”

The snake, unlike those on land, does not have scales that help it move forward. It spends its entire life at sea and gives birth in the water. Its body is like a modified fin and its tail is like a paddle. It feeds on small fish and eel.

Pauly took the snake back to the museum where it will be studied, preserved and added to the museum’s collection of more than 190,000 snakes — one of the largest research collections in the nation.

“This is the most widespread snake species in the world, found in waters of the Pacific and Indian oceans,” Pauly said. “Thus it gets seen quite a bit in places like Central America and Southern and Central Mexico. But for the Pacific Coast of the Baja Peninsula and California, this is an extremely rare find.”

On Wednesday night, Pauly spent time studying the snake. He took a tissue sample for genetic studies.

“Whereas a vet would want a more detailed work-up to consider the potential causes of death, as a museum curator, I am more concerned with preserving the DNA sample and the whole specimen to maximize research value of this incredibly important species for centuries to come,” he said.

“Whether this will be really bad news for other species, we can’t predict,” he said. “It certainly says we really need to be watching. It tells me something very different is happening. In a relatively short time, four snakes have been found and one not in an El Niño year. We are seeing dramatic shifts associated with warming oceans. The only way we will get answers is to get more snakes.”

Pauly encourage beachgoers to be cautious and keep a lookout for the brightly colored snake.

“Most of the California coast is walked every day,” he said. “If people see something unusual, it might be a unique find.”

Pauly said there have been no reported human fatalities as a result of the sea snake’s venom. Most bites have occurred when fishermen found them in their nets.

“There are just a handful of people to get to see this snake, how incredibly lucky the woman was who found it,” he said.

If you see a sea snake, Pauly suggests taking a photo and emailing it to nature@nhm.org.

Erika Ritchie reports on South Orange County coastal communities, military issues and Camp Pendleton for the OC Register. She explores everything from coastal access, environmental issues and marine life to city government, animal welfare and quality of life. She’s won many awards including first place in news (2016) by the Orange County Press Club for her coverage of record numbers of whale entanglements off the California coast. Erika’s covered military change of command and seen military affairs firsthand from the sea aboard a battleship, air from a MV-22 Osprey, and land including Pendleton’s International war games and San Clemente ... just that, highlighting achievements of some of Orange County’s most dedicated volunteers and non-profit leaders. Since joining the Register in 2001, she’s at times covered every city in South Orange County delving into development, housing, transportation, county government and social issues. She’s often written about Saddleback Church and Pastor Rick Warren’s emerging national and global roles. Erika’s passionate about animals and outdoor adventure. She runs, stand-up paddles and skis - both alpine and x-country. She frequents Mammoth Lakes and Mountain for hiking, biking & skiing and for her dogs to frolic in the snow and lakes. She grew up bilingual in German and conversational in French.